Bar Tales: Goodbye
by tim gueguen
Summary: Urd's favourite bar is about to go through a major change.


Bar Tales: Goodbye  
  
By tim gueguen  
  
Based on characters and situations from the series Oh My Goddess, created by Kosuke Fujishima. This story is intended for non-commercial entertainment purposes, with no intent to violate commercial copyright for personal gain.  
  
---------------------------  
  
The Iron Horse Tavern was a small Tokyo bar. Like many small Japanese bars it was a quiet place mainly catering to customers who wanted a good conversation over a nice drink. The only thing that really distinguished it from numerous similar establishments was one of the regulars.  
  
One didn't just randomly walk into a place like the Iron Horse. Japanese bars of that sort were more like private members' clubs than anything else, and you usually had to be introduced by another regular to be accepted as one yourself. Strangely, no one could remember exactly who had done that for her. This was especially odd given that she wasn't Japanese. There was no mistaking that the strikingly beautiful woman with the white hair and bronze skin was a foreigner, and hence wasn't the kind of patron such a place would normally attract, or in many cases accept. Yet somehow the young woman known as Urd had become a regular.  
  
Those who knew what Urd actually was might have speculated that she had used supernatural means to pull it off. But anyone who asked the Goddess of the Past as much would have gotten nothing but an enigmatic smile for their trouble.  
  
Urd often sat at the bar proper and talked with Toshiro Nakamura, the bartender and owner of the Iron Horse. So she was one of the first customers to hear the news.  
  
"You're selling the Iron Horse and quitting?" asked Urd, her surprise obvious.  
  
"That's right. The sale will go through by the end of the month."  
  
"Why?"  
  
Toshiro put down a glass he had just finished drying. "Take a look at me Urd. How do I look?"  
  
Urd studied him for a moment. Middle age had been kind to him. He still had most of his hair, and it had only grayed a bit at the temples. He looked trim and healthy, the result, Urd knew from past conversations, of a lot of jogging and a lifelong passion for tennis. "You look fine to me."  
  
"Exactly!" he replied with a grin. "I'm 56 years old, and I'm as healthy as an ox. And that's why its time to quit." He poured Urd a shot of whiskey and placed it in front of her. "I'm not getting any younger Urd."  
  
"You're not exactly ancient," noted Urd.  
  
"True. But the years go by before you know it. So, I've decided now is the time to start my retirement, while I can enjoy it." He poured another shot of whiskey. "Especially since I can afford to. Business has been damn good the last few years, especially since you showed up."  
  
Urd sat up a little straighter. "So, you're saying my wonderous beauty has been bringing them in?"  
  
Toshiro laughed. "That's one of the things I like about you Urd. You've got a very healthy ego, and you're not afraid of showing it. Of course being a foreigner means you can get away with it easier than a Japanese woman could."  
  
Urd smiled, tossing her long hair back. "Well you know what they say in English. If you've got it, flaunt it." Urd's expression became more wistful as she looked around the room. "I'm really gonna miss this place."  
  
"Hey, I said I'm selling it, not that its closing," he countered. "My nephew Tetsuo is going to buy it."  
  
"Well, that's good news." Tetsuo had filled in as bartender a few times before, and Urd knew he liked the place as much as the customers did. "I'd hate to have to break in a new crew," she said.  
  
Toshiro smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Ah, what are you worried about? You'd have them eating out of your hand in no time."  
  
Urd laughed and picked up the shot glass of whiskey in front of her. "Well, I guess a toast is in order. To your retirement. May it be everything you want it be."  
  
Toshiro picked up the other shot glass. "Thank you very kindly Miss Urd. Cheers!"  
  
"Cheers!" echoed Urd as they tapped their glasses together.  
  
---------------------------  
  
Urd's expression was a thoughtful one as she walked back towards the temple where she lived with her sisters, the goddesses Belldandy and Skuld, and Belldandy's human boyfriend Keiichi Morisato. She found herself thinking about the differences in the way time passed for humans and for those who were part of the godly realm.  
  
Time of course did pass for a goddess like Urd. The years went by and the Universe changed, as did Urd and many of her fellows. But for those of the heavens the passage of the years was something that was often ignored. After all they had a largely unlimited amount of time in which to complete their plans and fulfill their goals. The changes they did experience were slow and usually only positive. What was a century or two when you had untold more available, and your abilities would remain at their peak indefinitely?  
  
That wasn't the case for humans. Sooner or later they realised their time on Earth was finite, and that certain things were only possible for them for a certain length of time. They might ignore the changes the years brought for a short time, but sooner or later they would be reminded by the world around them, be it the changing of the seasons, the birth of a child, or their own physical changes.  
  
This was something Urd herself noticed more and more. Even though she had only known him for a few short years she had noticed how Keiichi had changed, maturing both physically and emotionally. She'd seen the same thing happen with other humans that she knew, like Keiichi's sister Megumi. Even Tamiya and Otaki, who seemed at first glance to be exactly the same clueless goofballs as when she met them, had changed in subtle ways.  
  
Urd smiled as she walked up the temple steps. Perhaps learning to appreciate such things was why she was allowed to remain on Earth. Having a better understanding of what life was like for humans might help bridge the gap that existed between the earthly and the divine, and help her to do her job better. Even if it weren't the reason, learning things like this would be both of personal value and look good on her record.  
  
"And my record can do with all the help it can get," she muttered as she walked into the temple.  
  
------------------------------  
  
Despite the title this is the first in an irregular series of stories based around Urd's involvement with the Iron Horse Tavern. 


End file.
